10 Wrestlers You Won't Believe Never Had A Five Star Match

2. Chris Jericho

Kurt Angle The Rock
WWE

Chris Jericho made a career out of reinvention.

His work as a junior heavyweight propelled him to the mainstream consciousness, and he remained there by bulking up his physique and thoughtfully scaling back the pace of his matches to fully integrate himself into the WWF main event scene. There was little, perhaps nothing, he couldn't do; single, tags, stipulations - Jericho excelled in every environment in which he was placed.

As sensational an all-round talent Jericho was at his best, he was unfortunately prone to sloppiness. Perhaps that and his jack of all, master of none reputation factored into his never receiving the fabled five star rating.

Closest Candidate: Chris Jericho Vs. Chris Benoit, Royal Rumble 2001.

The Intercontinental Title ladder match was hugely inventive - Jericho countering Benoit's suicide dive with a chair shot to the face does not lose its shock value, even a decade and a half later - but those innovative spots were built to organically and woven into an excellent story predicated on Jericho' injured shoulder. Unlike some modern day iterations, none of it was contrived. The ladder was never positioned purely to set up the next spot so much as those spots were worked around it.

Maybe the pervasive nature of the stipulation itself contributed to the ****3/4 rating. In itself, it is a masterpiece.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!